Group: General Fitness & Exercise

General Fitness & Exercise
Created: 2011/12/31, Members: 382, Messages: 54581

Various general exercise related discussions. Find out what it takes to reach your fitness goals through daily effective exercise. With so many options we try to find out what works best.

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Should I do some cardio?

savcomeshere
savcomeshere
Posts: 2
Joined: 2007/02/04
United States
2007/03/05, 11:20 PM
I'm shooting for gaining lean muscle mass. I've read that I shouldn't do cardio. But here's the thing, I'm not fat, but I have some fat around my belly and all over my body. I actually think that I matabolize pretty well since I have a hard time gaining weight, but I'm not skin and bone like other people who have great metabolisms are. I want to lose that extra layer of fat.
ecle5c
ecle5c
Posts: 1,312
Joined: 2003/07/10
United States
2007/03/06, 12:33 PM
Most folks are unable to both gain muscle and burn fat at the same time. It comes down to calories. More calories than yoru required level helps to build muscles (with proper workout), less calories helps lose weight (assuming right foods and workout).

You have to prioritize your goals and go from there. First thing though is to check your diet, it is key to any goal.
jonshez
jonshez
Posts: 273
Joined: 2007/01/14
United Kingdom
2007/03/06, 02:36 PM
So far I've been able to combine the two, but maybe I'm 'lucky' because I have quite a bit of fat to lose (another 44lbs)!

I eat a low enough calorific intake to give me a defecit, but I take a lot of calories from protein and only a little from carbs and fat (probably more than I should for carbs). My theory is that my body will use the bodyfat for the moving around stuff and take up the protein for muscle growth.

I'd be curious to know from one of the more knowledgable folks whether I'm just making that up! Maybe as my body gets closer to it's lean weight the balance will come more into play.

Jon